A DAD from Coventry used a fake business on the outskirts of the city as a front for an international cannabis smuggling operation.

Yesterday Christopher Woodings, aged 27, was jailed for ten years for his role in a scam which brought up to £19 million of cannabis into the UK during 18 months.

Woodings, of Somerset Road, Radford, was arrested following an undercover police sting.

The court heard he used a fake antiques business in Binley Woods, to act as a front for smuggling tonnes of illegal drugs into the country.

Woodings, who also duped his ­fiancé and their three-year-old child, that his money was made legitimately by the antiques business, formed the UK arm of a plot, which brought cannabis into the UK from Thailand.

It involved hiding packages of cannabis inside the false bottoms of metal water filters which were loaded on to crates and flown from Thailand into Heathrow Airport.

When first interviewed by police, Woodings maintained he was selling the filters on for scrap and was unaware of the drugs.

But during a third police interview – five months later – he admitted the crates had been delivered to his business unit based at OIA Adventure Warehouse in Binley Woods. From there the crates were taken to a garage in London Road, Whitley, where they were disassembled and the drugs recovered from inside.

Prosecuting, Louise Pierpoint told the court some 40 courier invoices had been recovered from Woodings’ home, detailing “regular” deliveries of ‘in-line filter systems’ to his business between June 27, 2007 and June 20, 2008.

Woodings later admitted the scam had been operating for longer but could not remember the exact number of deliveries he had received.

Ms Pierpoint said that if the deliveries continued at the same frequency throughout the 18 months, almost six tonnes of cannabis could have been imported with a street value of up to £19 million.

The plot was foiled when two consignments were searched at Heathrow Airport on June 17 last year.

After customs officials rumbled the smuggled drugs, the deliveries were allowed to continue on their route and were tracked to Woodings’ business and then to his ­garage in London Road. While the drugs were being unloaded police officers swooped and Woodings was arrested.

He initially denied knowledge of the operation but months later requested an interview with police, where he made a full admission of his involvement and revealed he had been paid £72,000 for his role.

Woodings, who at the time of his arrest had an “increasing cocaine addiction” was charged with four counts of acquiring possession of ­illegal drugs, three counts of supplying controlled drugs and one count of possession with intent to supply, relating to a stash of cannabis found in his kitchen. He admitted all charges.

Kate Iliffe, defending, said: “He was the man who got his hands dirty. I am not going to stand here on his behalf and make excuses for him and suggest he was roped into this or did not know what he was doing.

“He plainly did. He was approached and the suggestion was put to him. He went into this with his eyes open.

“He is the man the paper trail led to – both with the invoices in his house and other documents.

“It was always him who was going to be found. It was him effectively taking the risk and taking the responsibilty of these deliveries at this end.

“He was being paid a wage for what he was doing. He was effectively the foot soldier in this.”